Memory devices are typically provided as internal, semiconductor, integrated circuit devices in computers or other electronic devices. There are many different types of memory including random-access memory (RAM), read only memory (ROM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), synchronous dynamic random access memory (SDRAM), and flash memory.
Flash memory devices have developed into a popular source of non-volatile memory for a wide range of electronic applications. Flash memory devices typically use a one-transistor memory cell that allows for high memory densities, high reliability, and low power consumption. Changes in threshold voltage of the memory cells, through programming (which is often referred to as writing) of charge storage structures (e.g., floating gates or charge traps) or other physical phenomena (e.g., phase change or polarization), determine the data value of each cell. Common uses for flash memory include personal computers, personal digital assistants (PDAs), digital cameras, digital media players, cellular telephones, solid state drives and removable memory modules, and the uses are growing.
Power consumption is often an important consideration in the design and usage of memory devices. While many operations of a memory device consume relatively large amounts of power, these operations can be come much larger consumers of power if faults in the memory device, such as electrical shorts, lead to unintended current paths. Not only can such faults lead to increased power consumption for an individual operation, they can further hinder successful completion of that operation, which can lead to wasted additional iterations of the operation seeking a successful completion that might be unobtainable. Such additional iterations further exacerbate the power consumption issues. In addition, such faults may lead to data loss through false indication of threshold voltages.
For the reasons stated above, and for other reasons stated below which will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon reading and understanding the present specification, there is a need in the art for alternative methods of operating memory, and apparatus to perform such methods.